Launcher



A. B. MEINEL July 30, 1957 LAUNCHER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Oct. 24, 1945 INVENTOR new a. M we; 11%

BY i5 KTTORNEYS July 30, 1957 A. B. MEINEL LAUNCHER 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Oct. 24, 1945 ADE/V 8 ii? l/VEL -QEMW- ORNEYS A. B. MEINEL July 30, 1957 LAUNCHER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Original Filed Oct. 24, 1945 INVENTOR HEM/EL ADE/V 8. I I

BY 6/ mounts 2,800,836 Patented July 30, 1957 ice LAUNCHER Aden B. Meinel, Pasadena, Calif., assignor to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Original application October 24, 1945, Serial No. 624,295. Divided and this application July 20, 1953, Serial No. 369,045

1 Claim. (Cl. 891.7)

This invention relates to folding rocket launchers and more particularly to a novel folding launcher for rocket targets.

One object of the invention is to provide a launcher which is particularly designed to fire rocket targets of the type disclosed in a copending patent application of James B. Edson, Serial No. 568,016, filed December 13, 1944, now U. S. Patent No. 2,485,870. This application is a division of copending application Serial No. 624,295, filed October 24, 1945; now abandoned.

Another object of the'invention is to provide a launcher for rocket targets which is foldable into a compact bundle to-facilitate its storage and transportation, thereby' providing a rocket target launcher particularly adapted for use in shipboard target practice because of its compactness when folded.

Another object of the invention is to provide a launcher for rocket targets which is readily assembled and disassembled without the use of tools, and which incorporates a novel collapsible supporting framework of simple construction.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel launcher rail for use with rockets having radially extending fins. The rail is M-shaped in cross section, the outer arms of the M being positioned with respect to each other at substantially the same angle as that between adjacent rocket fins in order to utilize the fin surfaces as well as the rocket body to steady the rocket during launching.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following specification and the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the assembled launcher with "a rocket ready for firing;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the launcher rail;

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 showing the position of the rocket in chain lines;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of the launcher in operating position.

Fig. 5 is a detailed perspective view of the forward pivotal fitting showing attachment of the forward struts and braces to the main beam of the launcher;

Fig. 6 is a detailed perspective view of the rear end of the launcher showing the rocket detent in position;

Fig. 7 is a detailed perspective view of a rear base plate showing the method of attaching the supports to the plate and the braces to the supports;

Fig. 8 is a detailed perspective showing the attachment of the forward leg to its base plate; and

Fig. 9 is a perspective of the folded rocket supports with the rail removed.

In the drawings, a main beam 11 in the form of a tube is provided at its rear end with a Y fitting 12. Rear struts 13 are pivotally connected to the legs of the Y fitting and diverge downwardly and rearwardly from the main beam. The forward end of the main beam is likewise provided with a Y fitting 14 to which braces 15 are pivotally connected, the braces diverging rearwardly and downwardly to the extremities of the rear struts 13 which are provided with lugs 16 for attachment to the ends of the braces 15 by removable pins 17.

The forward end of the main beam is supported by a forward strut 18 which comprises an upper tube 19 pivotally connected to a lug 20 on the forward end of the main beam. The upper tube 19 telescopes within a lower tube 21, the two constituting the strut 18, and is provided with a series of transverse holes into any one of which may be inserted a pin 22 passed through the outer tube for adjusting the height of the forward strut.

The lower tube 21 of the forward strut 18 and the extremities of the rearward struts 13 are mounted on base plates 23. The base plates are provided with centered pivot bosses 24 having keyhole slots therein to accommodate cross pins 25 provided at the extremities of the struts. As particularly shown in Figs. 7 and 8, the cross pins are flattened on two sides to permit insertion into the slots of the bosses 24 where they are locked in place by rotation of the strut. Chains 26 connect the three base plates to prevent spreading, and in addition, holes (Figs. 7 and 8) may be provided in the base plates through which stakes may be driven into the ground or by which the plates may be bolted to the deck of a ship.

The rear and forward Y fittings 12 and 14 form mounting pads upon which is mounted a launcher rail 27 which carries a rocketdetent 27a near its rear end. Bolts 28 extend upwardly through the'fittings 12 and 14 and screw into the launcher rail to hold it on its support.

The upper side of the launcher rail is M-shaped, forming a central channel or V groove 29 and downwardly diverging side portions 30 which form an angle with each other approximately equal to the angle between adjacent radial fins on the rocket target as will be explained in greater detail presently. The rear end of the rail is provided with a terminal plate 32 having suitable sockets into which the ignition wires 33 from the rocket and wires 34 from a firing circuit (not shown) may be plugged.

The bolts 28 and the pins 17 and 22 preferably have cross pins in their extremities to form handles so that they may be inserted and screwed into position by hand. In addition, they are conveniently attached to adjacent parts of the launcher by chains 31 to avoid loss.

As shown in Fig. 9, the struts 13 and 18, as well as the braces 15, fold against the main beam 11 which may be placed along side the launcher rail and the parts tied together, thus making a compact and easily carried bundle. Because of its compactness when stowed, the launcher is particularly adapted for shipboard use where space is always at a premium, but it may also be used in other applications to advantage.

In operation, beginning with the launcher in folded condition, a convenient method of setting up the launcher is to assemble the rail supporting elements in an inverted position with the main beam 11 bottommost. The struts 13, 18 and the braces 15 are swung upwardly into position; the free ends of braces 15 are joined to the lugs 16 on the lower ends of struts 13 by pins 17; base plates 23 are positioned on the extremities of the struts by means of the pin and slot arrangement 24, 25; and the chains 26 are connected to the base plates. With the supporting structure thus assembled, the assembly is rolled'over endwise pivoting on Y fitting 14 and the rear struts to the upright position shown in Fig. 4. The launcher rail is then placed on the support and bolts 28 are screwed into place to retain the rail on its support. The elevation of the rail is then adjusted by positioning the telescoping forward strut which is locked in the desired elevational position by pin 22.

The rocket targets with which the launcher is particularly intended to be used comprise a rocket motor 35 and radial fins 36 as shown in Fig. 1 and more completely described in the aforementioned patent application.

The rocket is positioned on the rail with the rocket motor lying in the V groove 29 and with each of two adjacent fins 36 in contact with its respective diverging side portion 30 of the rail 27. As previously mentioned herein, the side portions 30 form an angle with each other approximately equal to the angle between adjacent fins on the rocket, thus providing a large area of contact between the rrocket and the rail with a resulting increased stability in launching. In launching position, the rocket is retained against rearward movement by detent 27a carried by the rail. With the rocket in launching position, the wire 33 is plugged into one socket in terminal plate 32, the two sockets being interchangeable, and the wire 34 is plugged into a suitable recessed receptacle (not shown) located on the underside of the M-rail 27, whereupon the rocket is ready for launching by operating a suitable switch on a firing panel (not shown) connected to wires 34.

I claim:

A rocket launcher comprising a main beam, a first Y-fitting secured to the rear end of said main beam, rear struts pivotally secured to the legs of said Y-fitting and movable between a folded position substantially parallel with and adjacent said beam and a downwardly and rearwardly diverging operating position, a cross pin flattened 25 on two sides and secured to the free extremity of each rear strut, a second Y-fitting secured to the forward end of said main beam, brace members pivotally connected to the legs of said second Y-fitting and movable between folded positions substantially parallel with and adjacent said beam and extended operating positions in which their free ends are adjacent the extremities of said rear wardly extending operating position, a cross pin flattened on two sides and secured to the free extremity of said forward strut, a plurality of base plates respectively releasably connectable to said rear and forward struts, a

pivot boss on each of said base plates, a portion of each of said pivot bosses defining a keyhole slot for the accommodation of said cross pin individual thereto, and a launcher rail removably mounted on said beam.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 310,852 Roys Jan. 13, 1885 959,291 Benet et al. May 24, 1910 1,089,307 Benet et a1 Mar. 3, 1914 2,308,798 Peiker Jan. 19, 1943 2,550,072 Lindvall Apr. 24, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 53,211 France Mar. 5, 1862 OTHER REFERENCES Figure 4 of P1. XVIH of section Fusees Russes from Fusees de Guerre, Konstantinoff, UF 75 0K82.

Page 233 of Treatise on Ammunition, UF 700G786 

